SMART News – How to write press releases in the digital age

Over the past five years the news media has been under a great deal of pressure. The public wants access to information as it happens. As more people use mobile devices to get their news online the traditional media has felt the pinch. Studie in the US and th euK show that journalits are relying  on PR content more now than ever before. A new book, SMART News: how to write press releases that get found in search and shared on social media, walks PR professionals, marketers and business owners through the steps to produce digital content that meets the current needs of the media and the public.

More than a third of the journalists in newsrooms in the US have been laid off and according to the 2013 State of the Media report from Pew Research Center this has opened the door for news content from nonprofits and brands to be included in news reporting: “With fewer specialized beats your press release has never been more important. Often, it provides language we see verbatim in news stories.”

As early as 2008 savvy PR practitioners were using search and social to optimize press releases, track results and even show brand lift. Since then there have been some major changes in both search and social media. This book has the basics and the latest information, including Google’s new guidelines for press releases. 

For company news to get found and used by the media it has to be:

• Well researched
• Well written
• Newsworthy
• Optimized for search engines and social sites
• Provide value
• Make reporting the story easier
• Have visuals that extend and enhance the story

A traditional text press release written in the inverted triangle format is no longer the most effective format. 

This new book by Sally Falkow, a veteran of the PR industry and a pioneer of Digital PR, is an easy to read step-by-step guide to researching, writing and distributing press releases in the digital age.

“Although most PR and marketing agencies, as well as corporate PR departments, have accepted digital and social media as an essential part of their activities, content is not being prepared so that it gets the best results,” said Falkow. “Current and future practitioners are not using this approach. Less than 20% of press releases distributed on the wire are optimized for search and social. Most schools are not teaching this material to their students. There is a definite need for this information.”

What makes news SMART?

98% of journalists start a story by doing a Google search. If your press release is not optimized for search – both news and web search – it has minimal chance of being found and read by interested journalists, bloggers and members of the public.

Social media fuels traditional media.  Journalists and bloggers watch sites like Twitter, Reddit and Pinterest for content about for breaking news stories.  They dig through LinkedIn for experts and sources. 15% of U.S. adults get most of their news from friends and family through social media. 77% of those follow links to full news stories. Almost 25% of Americans between 18 and 29 rely on social media as their primary source of news, so it’s vital to get your news seen and shared in social media.   The Pew State of the Media report has identified the sharing of news as the one factor that will most impact the news media in the next decade.

Media sites know that when a story has an appealing image or interesting video it gets more views, comments and shares.  Facebook recently redesigned their Timeline to take advantage of the growing interest in visual content. PR Newswire’s research shows that when you add images, infographics and video to a press release you can get up to 9.7 times more views. 

Reporters say that good images and video with a press release significantly increase the chance that they will use your material. Every press release should have two or three multimedia elements attached.

In our “always-on” world of constant communication attention is the scarcest and most valuable commodity.  People are bombarded with messages all day long.  Your release has to cut through that clutter.

Once it is visible in search and social your press release content has to be interesting and useful to the reader in order to get their attention. That means you have to know what interests them right now and what will push their “go” button and get them to pay attention and share it with others.

This is one of the most important factors in getting your press release found, seen and shared. People are looking for information and news online, but they will only pay attention to content that’s relevant to their current interest or situation.

You have to do your research and get to know your audiences.  Write press releases that give them the news and information they need.

People engage with brands they feel they can trust. Your press releases must include content that engenders that sense of trust. The most trusted form of content for the public is reviews or recommendations from friends, fans, followers and family. The media wants trusted sources they can rely on who will provide them with excellent content.  If you consistently provide good quality content you can become that source.

SMART News: how to write press releases that get found in search and shared in social media is available on Amazon Kindle and in print from McNallyJackson.com

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